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The Ethias Tour de Wallonie is traditionally a race for punchers and sprinters, as in a part of the world without big mountains, the race unfolds as a series of undulating classics. However, for this edition, the organizers have decided to add a 32-kilometer individual time trial, which will undoubtedly be decisive for the final outcome of the race. It is worth noting that in the 21 days of the currently ongoing Tour de France, there are fewer time trial kilometers than in the 5 days of the Ethias Tour de Wallonie.

Route

As mentioned, the GC will undoubtedly be decided in the individual time trial of the fourth stage, while the other four stages present routes filled with hills. In principle, the first and last stages are the most challenging, while stages 2 and 3 seem more suitable for sprints. However, this is only in theory, as all finishes include short climbs that can split the peloton.

Favorites

The inclusion of the time trial greatly influences the race and has attracted several specialists in the discipline, who have a good chance of conquering a .Pro general classification. Among them, undoubtedly, the Italian Filippo Ganna (800) is the top favorite. Other notable specialists include Bruno Armirail (200), Bauke Mollema (600), Mauro Schmid (600), Kévin Vauquelin (200), Casper Pedersen (200), Lucas Plapp (400), Daan Hoole (200), and Thibault Guernalec (200). Arnaud Démare (1000) can also achieve good results in time trials when he sets his mind to it, but perhaps the distance is too long for him.

For the remaining stages, resilient sprinters like Arnaud Démare (1000), Kaden Groves (800), Arnaud De Lie (400), Giacomo Nizzolo (400), Davide Ballerini (400), Hugo Hofstetter (400), Elia Viviani (400), Arne Marit (200), or Thibaut Nys (200), or punchers such as Mauro Schmid (600), Andrea Bagioli (600), Lorenzo Rota (400), Sep Vanmarcke (200), Mauri Vansevenant (400), Sven Erik Bystrom (200), Stefano Oldani (400), Florian Sénéchal (400), and Gianni Vermeersch (200), are some of the main contenders for stage victories.

Photo: © Ethias Tour de Wallonie